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Orlando Magic forward Chuma Okeke will be sidelined for at least a next month after having arthroscopic left knee surgery, the team announced Tuesday morning.
Okeke on Monday underwent a chondroplasty — a procedure that involves shaving/smoothing damaged cartilage.
The Magic said in a statement that he’ll be reevaluated in four weeks.
Okeke’s missed the last 14 games after leaving the Nov. 21 road loss to the Indiana Pacers with knee soreness — his injury designation for the last month before having surgery.
He averaged 5.4 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.4 assists in the Magic’s first 18 games (21.8 minutes).
Okeke averaged 6 points and 4.3 rebounds in seven games as a starter (27.5 minutes) when Paolo Banchero was out because of a sprained left ankle.
He played a significant role defensively in a few of the Magic’s mid-November wins, regularly guarding the opposing team’s top offensive player.
Okeke, 24, is in the third year of a 4-year, $15.1 million rookie scale contract he signed with the Magic in November 2020.
He was the team’s first-round pick from the 2019 draft (No. 16) despite tearing the anterior cruciate ligament during the NCAA Tournament in the same knee. Okeke missed the 2019-20 season and used it to work his way back.
The Magic exercised their fourth-year option on Okeke’s contract for next season when he’ll earn $5.27 million.
The Magic are on a four-game road trip that ends Wednesday against the Rockets in Houston.
Wendell Carter Jr. (strained right plantar fascia — the soft tissue under the foot), Gary Harris (strained right hamstring), Jonathan Isaac (left knee injury recovery) and Jalen Suggs (right ankle soreness) also have been out.
Carter hopes to return in Friday’s home game vs. the San Antonio Spurs at Amway Center.
This article first appeared on OrlandoSentinel.com. Email Khobi Price at khprice@orlandosentinel.com or follow him on Twitter at @khobi_price.
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